Lili Xili, sister of Fili and Kili
by PearlTenshiSerenity
Summary: No Summary Available
1. Chapter 1

31

_**Lili Xili, sister of Fili and Kili**_

(Note: Lili rhymes with Fili and Kili, Lili is pronounced **Lee-lee **(not lily), just like Kili is pronounced Kee-lee. But Xili, is pronounced zI-lee,) (Lindir is the elf) **Indilaivë** means lily-bird

"Uh, Gandalf, may I ask where we're going?" Bilbo asked Gandalf as they headed down the rocky terrain.

"We have to go pick up my sister." Fili, who had overheard his question, answered with a fond smile lighting his blue eyes.

"Her names Lili Xili." Kili had ridden up behind them, catching them unawares. "I think you'll like her Bilbo, she likes most everyone."

"Except Iki, son of Eki and Yoki," Fili reminded him.

"Why is a girl coming with us on our mission?!" Gloin asked, obviously not liking the idea at all.

"Because we couldn't leave her at home alone." Kili sounded somewhat grumpy about it too. "What with Iki always trying to get his dirty hands on her."

"Here we come now!" Fili cried as the company stopped outside an old well in the middle of nowhere. "We're meeting her here."

"Where is she?" Bilbo asked, looking around for this sister of theirs, curious of what a female dwarf looked like.

"Lili Xili is always late." Fili said cheerfully.

"Do you always call her by her full name?" Bilbo asked after a moment.

"No, we just call her Lili usually." Fili answered. A silent moment went by, then: "Uncle Thorin! Fili, Kili!" and out from the brush came a girl, running fast as a deer, hurtling towards the group.

"Lili!" Kili cried in return, swinging off his pony to hug her. Fili jumped off his horse and also hugged his sister. The two brothers grinned down at her as she talked a thousand words a minute, obviously having missed her.

Bilbo was surprised, along with the other dwarves who had never met her at her appearance. She had a heart shaped face with sweet blue eyes and a genuine pink-lipped smile. Her hair was as brown as Kili's, but there were strips of much darker brown hair entwining, it reached past her hips in a braid. She was actually quite tall for a dwarf, though it might have been the boots, and slender, and she seemed to give off warmth when she passed him. She wasn't outstandingly gorgeous, like a goddess, but had more of the sweet prettiness of the flowers or other good things. But she was beautiful in her own way. Her outfit had the Dwarvish look to it, made mostly of solid fabrics that would last and an apron-type over-cloth made of leather. She wasn't wearing male clothing of course, she wore a dress a little past her knees with pants underneath to account for modesty and leather boots just like her brother's.

"I bet you don't remember me." Dwalin said, normally gruff, but softening when he saw her.

"Of course I do, Uncle Dwalin!" she hugged Dwalin tightly then turned to Balin. "Uncle Balin!" she reached out for a hug from the old man and he gave it to her. Then pulled away to look at her.

"Well, look at you!" Said Balin. "All grown up!"

"Thank you, uncle." Lili smiled happily.

"You have the beauty of your mother." Dwalin said.

"Thank you." She blushed scarlet.

"Wait, wait, you have three uncles?" Bilbo asked, feeling behind.

"No, Uncle Thorin is our only real uncle. But Balin and Dwalin have always been like family to us." Lili smiled, hugging Dwalin again.

"Oh." Bilbo said intelligently.

"I have so much to tell you all…"

It was decided they'd put her on Myrtle with Bilbo until they arrived at their camping spot for the night, where they'd rearrange supplies so she could have her own pony, Minty. As soon as she finished exchanging hellos to everyone and Fili and Kili finished introducing them, she clambered up behind Bilbo and started talking about what had happened since they'd left her at the old inn.

"And then the butcher said that there was a creek a ways away so I went to go look at it, and guess what?" Lili stopped for a moment as if it actually were a question before racing on. "I caught a bucket full of fish, see?" and from her rather large and bulky backpack she produced a bucket of fish, that was indeed full. "I thought you guys could take a look at them to see if their edible."

"Hand 'em over, then." Fili reached over and took the bucket onto his pony. "Yes, I think these are alright. Good job, Lili." Lili beamed and started talking again. They'd been traveling all day and her chatter hadn't ceased except for when a big snake ran across the road. She'd looked a little faint but she had soon forgotten the incident and continued speaking.

Night fell, and the caravan slowly made its way to a little cave in rocks. Lili clambered off her pony and set to finding everyone's blankets, like a good little house-wife. Soon everyone's 'bed', if one could call it that was made, and on each there was lavender. Bilbo supposed she'd put it there for the smell, but she'd put some on her own bed too, and she smelled fine.

"What is this?" Gloin asked, tossing the lavender aside as he laid down for sleep. Immediately after supper, Lili had gone to sleep. Bilbo understood why, after all the talking she'd done he wouldn't have woken up again for days.

"Lili is very peculiar; she thinks lavender insures pleasant dreams." Fili answered. Bilbo had been about to throw the lavender off his pillow, he paused and instead moved it to the side so he could lie down. He hoped it also insured falling asleep quickly, as Lili had done.

!

Bilbo's smile fell off his face, as he heard a loud screeching in the distance, he turned away from Myrtle, who was still happily munching the apple he had given her and looked to the dwarves taking the watch in alarm. "What was that?"

"Orcs." Kili answered darkly, looking out into the night.

"Orcs?" Bilbo asked in alarm, hurriedly walking back to the safety of the fire's light. Thorin woke up from the light doze he had been in and listened.

"Throat-cutters. There'll be dozens of them out there." Fili took the pipe out of his mouth to answer.

"The lone-lands are crawling with them. They strike in the wee small hours when everyone's asleep." Kili gestured with his hands to the alarmed Bilbo. Lili woke up at that instant and listened. "Quick and quiet, no screams. Just lots of blood." Bilbo looked over at the mountain tops and Fili and Kili started chuckling, but it was cut short by a panicked scream. A moment later, Lili was weeping in front of the fire, shaking in fear. Fili and Kili's smiles were immediately wiped off at the sight, they didn't move for a second, looking chagrined.

"You think that's funny?" Thorin asked standing and walking up. "You think a night raid by Orcs is a joke?"

"We didn't mean anything by it." Kili answered, looking at the ground as their sister cried on.

"No you didn't." Thorin answered. "You know nothing of the world." Their proud uncle walked away, leaving the brothers ashamed and a sobbing niece.

Lili went crawling into the little alcove to sit by her brothers. They embarrassedly put their arms around her, wishing they'd know she was listening.

"Don't mind him, laddie." Balin told them, walking up. "Thorin has more cause than most to hate Orcs."

"After the dragon took the lonely mountain, King Thror tried to reclaim the ancient Dwarf kingdom of Moria. But our enemy had got there first." Balin continued. "Moria had been taken by legions of Orcs, led by the most vile of all their race: Azog the Defiler."

"The giant Gundabad Orc had sworn to wipe out the line of Durin. He began, by beheading the king." Balin choked on the words, remembering it with sadness. "Thrain, Thorin's father, was driven mad by grief. He went missing. Taken prisoner or killed, we did not know. We were leaderless. Defeat and death, were upon us."

Bilbo listened transfixed. "That is when I saw him. A young Dwarf prince, facing down the pale Orc. He stood alone against this terrible foe. His armor rent, wielding nothing but an oaken branch as a shield.

"Azog the Defiler learned that day, that the line of Durin would not be so easily broken." Fili and Kili listened to Balin with rapt attention as he told them they're uncle's history. "Our forces rallied and drove the Orcs back. And our enemy had been defeated."

"But there was no fest, nor song that night, for our dead were beyond the count of grief. We few had survived." Balin's voice cracked, then strengthened. "And I thought to myself then, there is one who I could follow. There is one I could call king." Thorin turned around to see all the dwarves had awoken and were staring at him in awe. He slightly bent his head and went through the dwarves.

"And the pale Orc?" Bilbo asked. "What happened to him?"

"He slunk back into the hole whence he came." Thorin said darkly. "That filth died of his wounds long ago." Balin and Gandalf exchanged a glance, and Gandalf sighed. Lili watched her uncle go.

"Here, Lili." Fili handed her his blanket, knowing he had to make amends. "You can sleep between us if you want."

"Thanks." Lili whispered, burrowing under the cover, hoping that the blanket could hide her from the nightmares that waited.

Then next day they set off again, even with it raining Lili's chatter couldn't be deterred, especially now that she had her own horse she kept talking to. "You know, this reminds me of the time when I was very young and Kili told me that he'd seen a white doe outside, and so I went to look, but I couldn't find it, and when I tried to get back in, they'd locked it! Can you believe such a thing? And I ended up just sitting out there for half of the hour until Fili remembered that they'd locked the door! I had a cold for weeks!"

"Oin, you should give her some tree-sap." Gloin muttered.

"What do you mean?" Bilbo asked in confusion.

"I mean if we could just trick her into eating a little bit, she wouldn't be able to talk till we found somewhere to rest and make tea."

"Tea?" Bilbo asked, still confused.

"Tea's what would loosen the sap; hopefully Thorin would see our view and not give her tea till we get to the lonely mountain." Oin answered.

"Here, Mr. Gandalf! Can't you do something about this deluge?" Dori asked as the thunder rumbled overhead. Bofur pulled the pipe out of his mouth and tapped it. Shook his head and put it back in.

"Uncle Balin, where does the rain go that doesn't get drunken by the plants?" Lili continued asking questions.

"It is raining, Master Dwarf, and it will continue to rain, until the rain is done." Gandalf answered. "If you wish to change the weather of the world, you should find yourself another wizard."

"Are there any?" Bilbo asked.

"What?" Gandalf asked.

"Other wizards." Bilbo clarified.

"There are five of us. The greatest of our order is Saruman the White." Gandalf answered. "Then there are the two blue wizards, do you know, I've quite forgotten there names." Bilbo nodded.

"And who is the fifth?" Bilbo asked.

"Well, that would be Radagast the Brown." Gandalf said.

"Is he a great wizard? Or is he more like you?" Gandalf blinked, Bilbo didn't realize the insult.

"I think he's a very great Wizard, in his own way." Answered Gandalf. "He's a gentle soul who prefers the company of animals to others. He keeps a watchful eyes over the vast forest lands to the east. And a good thing too. For always evil will look to find a foothold in this world."

"Are we there yet?" Lili asked tiredly, barely holding onto Misty, her pony. No one bothered to answer her question, since she'd asked it twenty times in the past two hours. She sighed dramatically and buried her head in her pony's mane. A half an hour later she perked up at the words of her uncle.

"We'll camp here for the night." Thorin announced, stopping his pony in front of a decayed abandoned house, with only the supporters and broken roof. Gandalf wandered inside the house, looking about. "Fili, Kili, look after the ponies. Make sure you stay with them."

"A farmer and his family used to live here." Gandalf told Lili, who immediately looked concerned.

"Oin, Gloin. Get a fire going." Thorin ordered.

"Aye. Right you are." Oin agreed, going to find the wood.

"I think it would be wiser to move on." Gandalf told Thorin, Lili shrunk black inside the decaying house, so that they wouldn't notice her. "We could make for the Hidden Valley."

"I have told you already, I will not go near that place." Thorin's glare landed on Lili in the back, she bowed her head and scuttled off to help Oin find wood. Gandalf felt bad for the girl for a moment.

"Why not? The Elves could help us." Gandalf insisted. "We could get food, rest, advice."

"I do not need their advice." Thorin said heatedly.

"We have a map that we cannot read. Lord Elrond could help us." Gandalf said as gently as he could to the stubborn Dwarf.

"Help? A dragon attacks Erebor. What help came from the Elves?" Thorin asked with a deep hatred gleaming in his eyes. "Orcs plunder Moria, desecrate our sacred halls. The elves looked on and did nothing. And you ask me to seek out the very people who betrayed my grandfather. Who betrayed my father?"

"You are neither of them." Gandalf told him. "I did not give you that map and key for you to hold onto the past."

"I did not know they were yours to keep." Thorin said. Gandalf's face contorted in annoyance and he stormed away.

"Everything all right? Gandalf, where are you going?" Bilbo asked in alarm as he went storming past.

"To seek the company of the only one around here who's got any sense." Gandalf told him, not looking back.

"And who's that?"

"Myself, Mr. Baggins! I've had enough of Dwarves for one day." Gandalf climbed atop his pony and rode away.

"Come on, Bombur, we're hungry." Thorin ignored Gandalf's retreating back.

"Is he coming back?" Bilbo asked, Balin shrugged.

"He's been a long time." Bilbo said anxiously, night had fallen and Gandalf had still not arrived back.

"Who?" Bofur asked, ladling out the stew into two wooden bowls.

"Gandalf." Bilbo answered.

"He's a Wizard. He does as he chooses." Bofur answers then hands Bilbo the two bowls. "Here, do us a favor. Take these to the lads. Stop it Bombur, you've had plenty. Oh, and tell Lili to come get some supper before Bombur eats it all."

"Aye, it's not a bad stew, Bombur. I've had worse." Gloin's hearty voice echoed in the back.

"Dori could've cooked it." Nori's voice was also heard, then laughter. Bilbo slowly made his way to the brush till he came to Fili and Kili, he tried to hand it to them but they weren't looking at him. He noticed the worried looks on their faces.

"What's the matter?" Bilbo asked.

"We're supposed to be looking after the ponies." Kili answered.

"Only we've encountered a slight problem." Fili continued.

"We had sixteen." Kili told him.

"Now there's- fourteen." Fili finished. Bilbo ran after Kili as he walked away.

"Daisy and Bungo are missing." Kili announced.

"Well, that's not good. Ha-ha." Bilbo laughed nervously at the sight of an uprooted tree. "And that is not good at all. Shouldn't we tell Thorin?"

"Uh, no. Let's not worry him." Fili answered. "As our official burglar, we thought you might want to look into it."

"Uh, well…" Bilbo said. "Looks like something big uprooted those trees."

"That was our thinking." Kili said.

"It's something very big and possibly quite dangerous." Bilbo said, and then he shook his head, trying to clear it. "Uh, well, do you two know where Lili is? She needs to come eat." Fili and Kili didn't answer.

"Hey. There's a light. Over there." Fili whispered, together the brothers and Bilbo scurried through the brush to find the source. "Stay down." There was a sound of grunting and laughter.

"What is it?" Bilbo whispered.

"Trolls." Kili said and then the twins jumped over the log and went running towards the fire's light. Bilbo ran to catch up then remembered the bowls of soup. He went back and got them and hurried to catch up, finding them hiding behind another log, watching the trolls.

"Oh." Bilbo hid behind a tree as a large troll went lumbering by with a pony in each arm. "He's got Myrtle and Minty! I think they're going to eat them, we've got to do something!"

"Yes, you should." Kili said, standing up and pushing him forward. "Mountain Trolls are slow and stupid, and you're so small, they'll never see you."

"M-me… no, no." Bilbo stuttered.

"It's perfectly safe. We'll be right behind you."

"If you run into trouble, hoot twice like a barn owl and once like a brown owl." Fili took the bowls from his, shoving him forward.

"Twice like a barn owl. No, twice like a brown owl—Once like- like a- Are you sure this is a good idea?" Bilbo turned back to find they'd gone. Probably to get help. Bilbo crept towards the trolls, as silently as he could.

"Mutton yesterday, mutton today and, blimey, if it don't look like mutton again tomorrow." Bert said grumpily, Bilbo crept closer.

"Quit your whining." Said William. "These ain't sheep. These is fresh nags."

"Oh! I don't like horse. I never have, not enough fat on them." The third troll, Tom, whined.

"Well, it's better than leathery old farmer." The troll beside him said grumpily. "All skin and bones he was. I'm still picking bits of him out of me teeth."

"I don't understand it." Lili muttered to herself as she finally came in view of the fire again. She'd run after Gandalf to find him, but he wasn't anywhere, when she finally came back, she'd spent a half hour wandering around in the dark looking for the glow of the campfire. She really should have told someone where she was going, Fili was going to be mad. As she neared the glow, she thought she heard much louder voices intermingled with her friends. Strange, had they made some new friends while she was gone? This quickened her step, ready for someone new to talk to. Only, as she burst through the brush and into the clearing, she found it wasn't what she'd expected.

Large troll-heads and all her friends turned to stare at her as she came. She halted, staring up at the gigantic creatures in fear.

"H-Hi." She squeaked. Before she could think to run or attack, the largest troll grabbed her. She didn't scream, not with the troll squeezing the breath out of her.

"Lili!" Kili shouted, in a bag, with Thorin, and several other dwarves.

"Let her go!" Fili shouted, he was on a rotisserie, with the rest of her friends. The troll tossed her onto the pile of Dwarves. She stared at everyone in fear, not making a sound, worrying her brothers even more.

"Lili? Lili!" Kili kicked her in the back. "Lili, are you ok?" She shook her head, but it comforted him that she was at least conscious. Bilbo looked at Lili, who stared at the rotisserie in silent horror. He hopped up, quite a feat in the bag and hobbled over to the trolls.

"You're making a terrible mistake." Bilbo began. Lili winced at the sound of his voice, as suddenly a white veil covered her vision.

"_I will take it! I will take it...I will take the Ring to Mordor." She heard a voice cry, she winced, feebly batting away the images that pressed down on her. "Is he going to die?" "You carry the fate of us all, little one." "A tree ... There was a white tree . . . in a courtyard of stone . . . It was dead!" _

_Then an image of Gandalf falling off a ledge and into the inky darkness, falling forever it seemed. And a brown-haired hobbit, who had a peculiar resemblance to Bilbo, screaming his name, tears streaming down his face, and for some reason, she noticed the ring hanging around his neck, glinting gold even in the dark._

"Lili, Lili, wake up!" She was jerked from the image by her older brother, blond hair in disarray.

"F-Fili." She sobbed.

"It's alright now." He said comfortingly, patting her back.

"What happened?" Gandalf asked cautiously, leaning on his staff.

"Y-you died." She turned away, burying her head in her hands. "There was…so much. A Balrog. A hobbit and a ring. I don't know what that was!"

Gandalf's face paled at the news, and then he recovered himself. "It was a bad dream, that's all. Don't worry." But she hadn't fallen asleep, how could it be a dream? Fili helped her up and she tearfully dusted herself off.

"Cheer up, Lili, they found a cave, c'mon, let's go have a look." Fili followed Gandalf back down a cave. It smelled so horrible that the tears went away immediately and were replaced by a revolted expression, her delicate nose scrunched up in disgust.

"Do we have to stay down here?" She whined, back to herself again.

"Come and look at this, Lili." Kili cried from a spot by a pile of junk. He held aloft a battered bird cage. "Look what I found."

"Ooh!" Lili squealed. "Can I have it, Kili? Please oh please!"

"You have to ask Thorin." Kili said quietly handing her the bird cage. "But if he says yes, I think we can get it to shine like a new penny." Lili fearfully clutched the cage to her chest, thinking about such an interaction.

Her Uncle had always been stiff, and sometimes cold, she attributed that to having seen his grandfather die and his father disappear, but she was often scared of him nonetheless. She'd always felt like a disappointment to him.

"Ah, Uncle Thorin," Lili squeaked. He and Gandalf turned, putting their new swords in their belts. "Um, well, Kili found me this cage, and I was wondering if I could keep it since," she hesitated. "Since the trolls don't need it anymore."

"Do as you please, I care not." Thorin walked away, not sparing her a glance.

"Th-thank you, uncle." Lili whispered to the ground. Gandalf sighed, walking after Thorin, wishing he would handle the girl more delicately.

"H-He said I could keep it." Lili tried to say cheerfully, but she wouldn't look up from the ground to meet her brothers' eyes.

"Lili…" Fili started, she shook her head, raised it for long enough to flash them a fake smile and hurried out of the cave.

Lili had just settled down under a tree when Thorin warned "Something's coming!" she scrambled up and hurried to be with the other's, who actually had weapons.

"Stay together!" Gandalf shouted, Lili didn't have to be told twice, hiding behind Nori, Ori and Dori. "Hurry now! Arm yourselves!" Everyone raced down a small hill when suddenly from the bushes came a sled, pulled by rabbits and carrying a strange man.

"Radagast." Gandalf sighed, Lili relaxed, they seemed to be on good terms. Hadn't she heard him talking about a wizard names Radagast the Brown? "What on earth are you doing here?"

"I was looking for you, Gandalf. Something's wrong. Something's terribly wrong." Radagast said, hand trembling. Lili wondered what it could be.

"Yes?" Gandalf asked.

"Uh. Just give me a minute." The wizard seemed to be having a hard time remembering. "Oh. I had a thought and now I've lost it. It was right there on the tip of my tongue. Oh, it's not a thought at all. It's a silly old," Lili watched as he stuck his tongue out. "stick insect." Lili watched the insect crawl away, wondering how the wizard had managed not to swallow it. She'd have to ask him.

"I have a bad feeling about this." Lili paced up and down. "We should go."

"Ms. Lili, perhaps a touch of tea would help." Ori said, with a light blush, holding out a canvas.

"Thank you Ori, but you've got to stop calling me miss." Lili sighed. "Do I really look that old?" she inspected her reflection in a muddy puddle nearby.

"N-no, of course not!" Ori stuttered and sat back down with his brothers. There was a loud howl and Lili jumped in her seat, looking to her uncle for his reaction.

"W-was that a wolf? Are there wolves out there?" Bilbo asked nervously.

"Wolves? No, that is not a wolf." Bofur said, Lili reached out to tap his shoulder and ask a question when a loud growling came from behind. She was suddenly pushed aside by a very big wolf, ferocious and evil-looking. All the dwarves rushed to the aid of Bifur who had been tackled by the beast. They quickly slew it and he stood up, unscathed. Before she could ask what it was another came racing down the hill. Kili stringed his bow and shot it, landing in its heart and Dwalin finished it off with his ax.

"Warg scouts." Thorin grunted, pulling his sword from the head of the first Warg. "Which means an Orc pack is not far behind."

"Orc pack?" Bilbo and Lili both squeaked at the same time.

"Who did you tell about your quest beyond your kin?" Gandalf asked, striding forward.

"No one." Thorin answered.

"Who did you tell?" Gandalf demanded.

"No one, I swear!" Said Thorin. "What in Durin's name is going on?"

"You are being hunted." Gandalf answered. Lili clapped her hand over her own mouth, stifling a welling panic.

"We have to get out of here." Dwalin said.

"We can't. We have no ponies!" Ori shouted. "They bolted."

"I'll draw them off." Radagast said.

"These are Gundabad Wargs. They will outrun you!" Gandalf tried to make him see reason.

"These are Rhosgobel rabbits." Radagast smirked. "I'd like to see them try." Lili put on her backpack and grabbed her cage, following Ori closely as they silently slipped out of the hill, a moment later they heard howls and they saw the Wargs chasing after Radagast. "Come and get me! Ha, ha!" they heard him shout over the wind.

"Come on." Gandalf ordered and the dwarves and Bilbo all followed him as he led them across the rocky terrain. Lili was quite impressed with herself, she hadn't tripped once. She was actually an adequate runner, when she wasn't tripping, from always rushing since she was later, or running away from one of her brothers' pranks. She felt like she was circling all the gigantic rocks spread out on the yellow grass. They just kept running, she decided to stay behind to help Bombur. Thorin quickly passed Gandalf and was leading the way, trying to figure out where the Wargs and Radagast were. Suddenly Thorin and Gandalf stopped, the group almost crashed into them. They'd almost run into the field which Radagast was leading the Wargs over. "Stay together."

"Move!" Thorin shouted, taking up the rear as they hurried away before the Wargs or their riders noticed them. Lili found herself short of breath as fear swept from the tips of her toes to the hairs on her head. "Ori, no! Get back!" Thorin pulled Ori back by the collar before he had ran in front of the Wargs again.

"All of you come on. Quick!" Gandalf ordered, pointing away from the rock they'd been behind. The dwarves passed Gandalf and Thorin obediently and Lili caught Thorin's question, laced with suspicion; "Where are you leading us?" She didn't care, anywhere was better than here, especially if Gandalf thought they'd be safe there. Gandalf didn't answer and Thorin had no choice but to follow him. They raced across the seemingly endless plains; a group of Wargs went racing past, still chasing Radagast. The dwarves switched direction and hid behind a large rock. Lili listened, barely able to hear anything over her large gasps. She found herself between her uncle and Kili, she thought she heard a growl and the clang of metal as a sword was unsheathed above them.

"What-" Kili shook his head, signaling for silence, for once; she listened to him, and barely breathed. She watched her uncle look pointedly at Kili's bow and then back at him. Bad idea! Her brain warned. Kili quietly took an arrow and put it to his quiver. He took two quick steps forward turned around and shot the Warg, he stringed another and it hit the Warg. It let out a shriek as it tumbled off the cliff and onto the ground in front of the, Lili covered her ears, not able to bear the sound of the vile creature. She closed her eyes, not able to look as Bifur and Dwalin stabbed the Orc that had ridden it to death. _"So much death; what can men do against such reckless hate?" _There was that dream again!

"Move! Run!" Gandalf shouted, Lili didn't bother to look to see what had caused such a panic, just chased after Gandalf, knowing he was probably their only hope for survival. They ran past all the large rocks and through the golden grass littered with fir trees.

"There they are!" Gloin shouted and it seemed to Lili that the Wargs and Orcs were closing in on them from all around. The ugly distorted faces, sneering at them, probably tasting their fear.

"This way! Quickly!" Gandalf shouted, gesturing with his staff. They all followed and Lili could only think that she was grateful they were following a level place between the hills, she could barely jog anymore, she felt as if she'd run to the Misty Mountains and back again. Thorin stopped, the hill he'd been about to run up had Wargs on top, watching him, slowly walking down, knowing they had him cornered.

"Minty!" Lili shouted at the sight. "Minty, come here girl!" the white horse raced across the short distance and snuggled her head into Lili, who momentarily forgot the danger, so relieved to see Minty safe and sound. A second later Daisy and Myrtle came following. Lili had never been more surprised and delighted to see three animals in her life.

"There's more coming!" Kili shouted, racing towards them, Lili's happiness was destroyed and she had to start running again, struggling to keep up. Thorin circled around and then made a decision, the only thing he could think of as his group struggled to come together. "Kili! Shoot them!" Kili obeyed, stringing his bow and hitting a Warg on its head, but the Warg crept forth, spurred on by its rider. Gandalf turned around, trying to see a way to safety when he saw what he'd been looking for the whole time, just a few feet away.

"We're surrounded!" Fili shouted turning and drawing his sword. Lili kept running, only a few feet to the safety of her brother's when she found she'd dropped the bird cage. She turned and fled back, looking through the tall grass as she ran for it. "Lili, no! Come back! LILI!" Lili grabbed the cage and was thankful it was none worse, and turned to go back when she saw a Warg a little ways behind her. An arrow flew by and it landed on the ground, dead. Lili raced back to her brother's, hoping that Fili was ok, wherever he was. Minty followed her, trotting beside her.

"Where's Gandalf?" Dori cried, as the dwarves started coming together in the middle of the field.

"He's abandoned us." Dwalin shouted, getting his ax ready. Ori gulped, the stone he'd hit the Warg had done nothing but annoy it further. The Orc laughed at the frightened expression on his face.

"Hold your ground!" Thorin shouted above the growls of the Wargs and Orcs. He unsheathed his sword and it glowed a faint blue in the sunlight. All the company stood in a circle around Lili, who was shuddering as another image flashed before her eyes. _"Fly you fools!"_

"There's Gandalf!" Lili cried, everyone turned to see his head popping out from behind a rock.

"This way, you fools!" Gandalf shouted, Lili stood stock still as everyone surged forward. It sounded so alike, it had been Gandalf in her head, but he hadn't been speaking to her, he had been speaking to the same brown-haired hobbit she'd seen earlier. Minty ran towards the cave, following Bifur and being the first one down, even though she was a pony, Gloin led Myrtle and Daisy down after them, the ponies neighing wildly as they slid down the slide made of rock.

"Come on, move!" Thorin bellowed, jumping on top of the rock. "Quickly! All of you!" Bifur and Gloin slid down, to where Lili didn't know, there must be a cave under the rock. "Go, go, go!" Bilbo and Balin slid down to join them. Lili shook her head and regained the use of her feet as Bombur and Nori went down the rock.

"Kili! Run!" Thorin shouted to his nephew who had remained shooting. Fili slid down the rock and Kili was about to follow when he and his uncle saw Lili, still straggling. Thorin shook his head; he thought she'd been the first one down. "Come on!" Thorin shouted, Lili ran faster still then suddenly she tripped and fell into the waving grass.

"LILI!" Kili yelled, a Warg five feet away, he shot it down, but the Orc got off and pounced on the girl. "LILI!" Kili and Thorin shouted. They were both shocked when she shoved the Orc off of her, dead, with a bloody dagger in hand. She dropped it and raced towards them.

"Get inside!" Thorin shouted and all three slid down the rock and into a small cave at the bottom. Lili didn't stand up when she landed at the bottom; she huddled closer and listened, waiting for the Wargs to come crashing down on them. She listened in the anxious silent and was surprised when she'd heard a horn sound, loud and long, but not like an Orcs.

From below she couldn't see anything no matter how she squinted, but she heard the sound of hundreds of arrows flying and hitting their marks, and the angry cry of the leader Orc. Lili let out a scream, which was quickly smothered, as an Orc's body came tumbling down into their cave, everyone moved out of the way and came to a stop between them. The loud rumbling continued over head of horses and Orcs and arrows.

"Elves." Thorin announced in disgust as he examined the fine silver arrow. He gave a suspicious look to Gandalf but was interrupted by Dwalin.

"I cannot see where the pathway leads. Do we follow it or no?" Dwalin asked, from the arch that led to a pathway.

"Follow it of course!" Bofur said eagerly and the Dwarves quickly piled through, following Dwalin.

"I think that would be wise." Gandalf muttered to himself. Lili was at the front of the crowd, eagerly pressing forward now that the danger was behind. Where could this obviously secret entrance lead? A hoard of golden treasures? She did her best to help Bombur, the tunnel was just wide enough for him or they all would have been in trouble indeed. She could hear the three ponies at the back, neighing as they tried to get through.

"Oh." Lili whispered at the sight that greeted her as the first one out. It was a valley. A hidden valley with waterfalls surrounding it and a beautiful river below it. There were large magnificent structures and pavilions and lots of trees. It looked like a place from one of her dreams. The pathway continued down the mountain side so you had to pass through a small forest of trees, and even from so faraway she could hear singing and birds twittering happily. "It's beautiful! Is this a Dwarf-kingdom?"

"The Valley of Imladris." Gandalf told them, as he also came from the pathway. "In the common tongue, it's known by another name."

"Rivendell" Lili heard Bilbo whisper. Rivendell? Was not Rivendell where the elves lived? How could something her friends so despised be so beautiful?

"Here lies the Last Homely House East of the Sea." Gandalf continued, all her friends anxiously whispered to each other. Lili listened to Thorin and Gandalf anxiously.

"This was your plan all along." Thorin growled. "To seek refuge with our enemy."

"You have no enemies here, Thorin Oakenshield." Gandalf said sternly. "The only ill will to be found in this valley is that which you bring yourself."

"You think the Elves will give our quest their blessing?" Thorin demanded. "They will try to stop us."

"Of course they will. But we have questions that need to be answered." Thorin sighed, still not wanting to even speak to the Elves. "If we are to be successful, this will need to be handled with tact. And respect. And no small degree of charm. Which is why you will leave the talking to me."

"Uncle Thorin, I need to change." Lili told her uncle. He shook his head.

"No, we must go on."

"But uncle, I'm covered in Orc blood!" Lili said aghast. "Do you wish to give the Elves the wrong impression about Dwarves, then? That the women always go about in dirty old clothes? There is a reason I packed my good outfit, in case something like this ever happened." Lili paused and shrank back, she had never argued with her Uncle before in her life.

"Very well, but hurry." Thorin relented. Lili nodded and dashed back to the small cave, pulling out the best outfit she'd brought. Not ideal for the traveling they did, but she'd known she would need it for something and better safe than sorry, right? She'd kept it clean in an extra cape she'd brought for severe cold. She was back out within four minutes, smoothing down the white skirt. It was quite acceptable, an ivory-colored dress that went down to the ankles with long bell sleeves, and she'd even packed a pair of white moccasins so that she looked respectable. She did her best with her hair, having to settle with re-braiding it.

"Huh." Kili said at the sight of her. "You didn't have to look that pretty, they're just Elves." Ori had a blush quickly spreading over his face to the amusement Dori and Oin.

"Ok, let's go." She chirped. They slowly made their way down the hill and hesitated when they came to the forest but Lili plunged on ahead. They followed her and soon they could see the other end on the pathway when sudden voices filled the trees. Lili and all the dwarves and Bilbo stopped and looked around for the singers.

"_O! What are you doing,_

_And where are you going?_

_Your ponies need shoeing!_

_The river is flowing!_

_O! tra-la-la-lally_

_here down in the valley!_

_O! What are you seeking,_

_And where are you making?_

_The faggots are reeking,_

_The bannocks are baking!_

_O! tril-lil-lil-lolly_

_the valley is jolly,_

_ha! ha!_

_O! Where are you going_

_With beards all a-wagging?_

_No knowing, no knowing_

_What brings Mister Baggins,_

_And Balin and Dwalin_

_down into the valley_

_in June_

_ha! Ha!_

_O! __Will you be staying?_

_Or will you be flying?_

_Your ponies are straying!_

_The daylight is dying!_

_To fly would be folly,_

_To stay would be jolly_

_And listen and hark_

_Till the end of the dark_

_to our tune_

_ha! ha!"_

"They're good…" Lili started, mesmerized, before her brothers dragged her away. "I just wanted to compliment them." Lili said, sounding insulted by their lack of trust in her.

"C'mon Lili, their spell is obviously working on you. You'll feel better when you can't hear them."

"I feel perfectly well, thank you." Lili said stiffly. The bridge they crossed over to come to the courtyard was only wide enough for two abreast, so Lili was stuck with a grumbling Gloin. They all waited out in the courtyard, for someone to invite them in, she supposed. She had been shoved into the middle of the Dwarves, but she didn't feel particularly protected. More cornered, she would call it. Lili's eye was caught by a large and sweet-smelling garden off to her right. She itched to go smell the flowers and look at the birds that incessantly sang, unaware of her friends' suspicion.

"Mithrandir." She turned away from looking at the garden to see an elf gracefully walking down the steps, he seemed to know Gandalf. That was an Elf? He didn't look evil, and he definitely didn't look like he was about to have them jailed.

"Ah. Lindir." Gandalf said to Lindir.

"Stay sharp." Lili heard her uncle tell Gloin. Actually, the Elf was quite handsome, not at all as she'd imagined elves. She'd always figured they had pale green skin and blond straight hair. The only thing strange about Lindir was his height and his pointed ears. Nothing remarkable.

Lili then became much more confused as the Elf started speaking in a language she'd never heard before. It wasn't like the Orc language, harsh and guttural, but more like a warm summer wind, like the one swirling about them now. "Lastannem i athrannedh i Vruinen." She was once again distracted when the birds took up their song even louder than before, trying to tell her something of import. She did her best to inch through the crowd of Dwarves to hear more clearly.

She returned once again to hear the Gandalf ask in common tongue "Where is he?" Suddenly a loud blow from a horn was heard, the same blow they'd heard earlier, Lili realized. All her friends turned and her mouth dropped open at what she saw.

"Ifridî bekâr!" Thorin shouted, and Lili was shoved to the middle of all the dwarves again as they readied their weapons, pointing them outwards. "Hold ranks!" (Ready your weapons!)

A long line of horses came trotting up the bridge, each bearing a rider in beautiful purple-tinged armor. It was like a parade of beautiful horses, each well groomed and healthy. Her friends grew alarmed as the horses came through the archway, and circled around them. Was this it then? Was this where they had us all thrown into prison? Lili wondered, shrinking back with the rest until the horses all came to a halt at once. Pretty much all of them had brown hair, or blondish brown.

"Gandalf." Said the one who was obviously the leader.

"Lord Elrond." Gandalf said, and Lili wondered if they were old friends. "Mellonnen." Lili wrote down a note in her mind to ask him what that meant later on. "Evínedh?" The Lord Elrond hugged Gandalf and then looked at the Orc sword he had. Then more elvish continued and Lili was ready to go to sleep, it was like a lullaby she couldn't understand.

"Farannem 'lamhoth i udul o charad. Dagannem rim na Iant Vedui." The Lord said, examining an Orc-blade he had brought back with him before handing it to Lindir. "Strange for Orcs to come so close to our borders." Lord Elrond said in common tongue and Lili was relieved. "Something, or someone, has drawn them near." Whoops.

"Ah, that may have been us." Gandalf said abashedly. Thorin took a step forward as he saw Lili sneak past her friends so she could get a better look at the Elves, but he was too late to stop her. "Oh." The first elf they'd spoken to caught sight of her. "Excuse me, I'm so sorry, I didn't see you."

"What is your name?" Lord Elrond asked, sensing a familiar aura about her.

"My name is Lili, and those are my brother's Kili and Fili and my Uncle Thorin." Lili answered readily.

"Really?" Lindir asked in disbelief. She was far too beautiful to be a Dwarf. And she didn't have a beard.

"You have a beautiful garden, my Lord." Lili said, mustering up her courage. "May I walk through it later, please?" She shrunk back, obviously waiting for a 'no'.

"Of course." Lord Elrond said and Lili's face lightened at the thought of going into the garden to see all of the flowers. "Perhaps Lindir would care to show you the way."

"Perhaps her Uncle would not care for such a thing." Thorin said, stepping forward, determined to stop any interaction of Lili with Elves before it started.

"Welcome, Thorin, son of Thrain." Lord Elrond said.

"I do not believe we have met." Thorin answered.

"You have your grandfather's bearing." Elrond answered. "I knew Thror when he ruled under the mountain."

"Indeed? He hade no mention of you." Thorin said coldly. Lili rocked back and forth on her heels, wishing she could tell Thorin how rude he sounded. She watched in fascination as Lord Elrond said something else in elvish and the group around her grew angry.

"What is he saying?" Gloin demanded, shoving through the Dwarves. "Does he offer us insult?"

"No, Master Gloin, he's offering you food." Gandalf answered exasperatedly. All the dwarves huddled together and all Lili could hear were murmurs.

"Ah well, in that case, lead on." Lili scampered along with her brothers as they all followed the elves down halls until they finally came to their room. She was delighted to find it had its own balcony that she could overlook and smell the garden.

"It's lovely, isn't it Ori?" Lili sighed, draping her arms over the banister.

"Y-yes." Ori answered, trying to think of something to say. "You really like flowers, don't you?"

"Yes, Fili planted me a garden right outside our home when I was ten, I've always liked them, I suppose." Lili paused, and then shook her head. "Hey, Ori, can I ask you a favor?"

"Anything." Ori answered.

"I'm going to go down to just have a look around. I can't wait till one of my brothers decides to take me. Don't tell anyone, alright?"

"Uh…" Ori said nervously.

"Thank you, Ori! I knew I could trust you." Lili quickly hugged him and dashed away.

"A-alright." Ori told the empty space.

"Finally." Lili was delighted; the smells that had reached her were even better than she imagined, and the flowers were vibrant colors and in full bloom. She put a finger to her mouth and let out a shrill whistle and a second later the birds were covering her, landing on all available space, covering her arms and shoulders and perching on her head. She laughed as they all chattered to her. Too many to really understand but she liked that they trusted her. The main birds around their home had been crows and they hadn't liked her very much.

"Le nathlam hí." Lili jumped and some of the birds flew up before landing again.

"My lord Elrond, I'm sorry, I-" Lili started, brushing off the birds, wondering how much he'd seen. (You are welcome here)

"Av-'osto." Lord Elrond told her soothingly. "What do you think of the garden?" (Don't be afraid)

"It's beautiful." Lili admitted, looking around. "It seems impossible that there could be so many flowers in one place."

"Does either of your brothers share your love of flowers, or birds?" Lord Elrond asked.

"No, not really. But they made me a garden and gave me a bird cage, and that's enough." Lili smiled down at a poppy waving in the warm summer wind. "How about you, all these flowers? Are they yours?

"No, they're meant for everyone to enjoy, both birds and insects and elves and dwarves." Lord Elrond continued. "But Elves do have, what do they say now? A green thumb."

"Well, that is good." Lili tried to smile, she felt as if he'd just told her something.

"You are Thorin's sister's daughter, yes?" Elrond asked, trying to keep her distracted.

"Yes, but my mother died when I was only a few months old." Lili answered as they walked through the garden. "Then my half-father died when I was only three, and Fili and Kili have raised me since, with Uncle Thorin popping in every now and then to make sure everything is as it should be."

"Your half-father?" Lord Elrond asked.

"Well…" Lili wasn't really paying attention to what she was saying, deeply adsorbed in a purple flower she had newer seen before in her life. "I mean, my father left with my twin when I was only a few days old, I never met him." Lili plucked the flower and was surprised to see the stem was irregularly shaped, going zigzag instead of straight, she'd never seen anything like it before in her life.

"Your twin?" Elrond asked, trying not to wake her from her trance with the flower they'd named Geliriel, after the sprightly elf that had found it and taught the flower to grow that way.

"Mm, Tili." Lili used her nail to slice off the stem to look inside; at least the inside was normal.

"My Lord Elrond, Mithrandir is searching for you." Elrond turned to see Lindir had been waiting patiently but had finally given up and interrupted. Lili looked at him in surprise, finally snapped from her trance-like state.

"Very well. Lindir, why don't you show her the roses and then escort her to dinner?" before Lindir could answer, Elrond swept away.

"May I?" Lindir asked, offering his arm.

"S-sure." Lili answered, taking it with a blush.

"Lili, how long have you been traveling with all of the Dwarves?" Lindir asked as he strolled alongside her to dinner.

"Not terribly long." Lili answered. "It's quite interesting, you know. Seeing the kind of adventures my brothers go on."

"My Lord Elrond is coming." Lindir said when they had arrived at the dinner place; her friends were already there, bickering as they looked at the salads. "I hope you enjoy your time in Rivendell."

"Thank you." Lili blushed at the ground, nodding her head before finding her way to sit between her brothers. She heard Ori and Dori talking about the food and almost laughed.

"Try it. Just a mouthful." Dori dared Ori.

"I don't like green food." Ori said shaking his head. Across from Lili, Dwalin looked through a bowl of salad.

"Where's the meat?" he asked. Oin stared at the vegetable on his knife in disgust.

"Have they got any chips?" Ori asked politely. Lili felt bad for her companions, only she and Bilbo were enjoying dinner, which consisted all of vegetables and fruits. They weren't used to greens like she was, after all she had her own garden, and when her brothers went to market and such, she had to save the meat for when they got home and were hungry, so it would last till they went hunting again. Plus, she had her own garden, filled with vegetables and flowers, so it was no big deal to her to be without meat for a few days.

"I like the music." Lili turned to tell Kili, a moment later; Oin stuffed a napkin in his hearing trumpet. She shook her head; this lot was not doing well at all. She bit her lip as her eye landed on the golden harp, gleaming in the sunlight, and turned quickly away.

"They have rolls." Lili told Fili impatiently, dumping three onto his plate and glaring at him; daring him to complain about nothing to eat. Fili obediently took a bite and Lili slumped slightly in her chair, doing her best to not look at the harp.

"C'mon Lili, don't be down. Go and play the harp a tune." Her friend told her. She shook her head, looking up at the sky, so blue with no clouds at all, just streaming sunlight.

"Is it always like this in Rivendell?" Lili asked herself.

"Usually." Lili started, seeing the brown-haired elf that had been playing the flute standing beside her. "I'm Miluiel, by the way."

"Oh, I'm, uh," her sudden appearance had left Lili disconcerted. "My name is Lili."

"I know." The elf said cheerfully. "I couldn't help noticing you admiring the harp earlier, care to play with me? I with my flute and you with the harp? It hasn't been played for a long time, actually. The Lady Arwen used to play it, but she's been away, with her grandmother in Lothlorien."

"Uh." Lili said. "What?" the elf had talked very fast, and her brain was still trying to translate, was this what her friends meant when they said she talked too fast?

"I said, will you play a duet with me?" Miluiel said again. "I promise it'll be fun. I've missed playing with someone."

"I don't think that's a good…whoa!" The elf had literally pulled her out of her chair and over to the harp. All the elves and dwarves watched her and her new friend, if that's how elves made friends.

"Yes it is lovely," Lili smiled, trying to pretend Miluiel had just been showing it to her. She moved to go back but Miluiel blew into her flute and started a slow melody Lili knew very well on the harp. She couldn't leave her trying to do it herself. Knowing she was going to hate herself for it later, Lili sat down on the stool and started playing. It was nice to be on a harp again, it had been ages, she used to go with her brothers to market and one of the marketers had let her play their harp to attract customers, but she'd had to stop when she got older, and couldn't be left alone because of propriety.

She had fun actually, and Miluiel looked like she was having a good time too. Too soon the melody ended and she was obliged to face reality, which was several elves and thirteen dwarves all staring at her.

Fili and Kili started clapping, filling the void of silence, Lili blushed as all the other dwarves started clapping too. She had thought maybe they wouldn't approve, her suddenly playing for no reason, but they looked happy. She curtsied to Miluiel, as custom and sat back down.

"You haven't lost your touch, have you?" Kili said proudly. "It's like riding a pony to you I guess, you never forget when you learn."

"I remember hearing you play when you were only this high." Balin smiled warmly at her. "And now look at you." Lili blushed. "A grown woman; can't deny it anymore. Next thing I'll know, I'll be at your wedding."

"Uncle Balin!" Lili exclaimed, shocked that he would bring it up at dinner with strangers. He usually was so polite, always following the rules about what you could and could not say, she must have looked plainly horrified because he looked abashed.

"You're right dear." Balin sighed as he looked back down at his salad but forced a bite down. Lili stared at the plate in front of her, not able to lift her head, waiting for laughter but instead the conversation continued on. She was relieved and grateful no one had laughed but she didn't think she would ever recover from being embarrassed like that in front of the Elves.

"You play excellently, Lili." Lindir told her after dinner, as they were walking through the gardens again. "Where did you learn?"

"Well, my father left behind a harp that was left up in an old attic and I found it. I kind of just taught myself, I guess." Lili answered, blushing at the ground.

"Would you like to go to a dance tomorrow night?" Lindir asked abruptly.

"A- a dance?" Lili stuttered. "Me?"

"I understand if you don't want to." Lindir looked away.

"N-no, I'd love too. But I've only ever danced the Dwarvish dances." Lili said quickly. "I don't know the first thing about dancing with- elves."

"Oh, it's like this." Lili turned red as Lindir took her hand and laid it on his shoulder and then took the other hand. Lili couldn't think straight as he walked her through the steps. She had never, ever, in her entire life been this close to a man she wasn't related to, besides Iki.

"I feel a little- dizzy." Lili said at the end of the dance.

"Yeah." Lindir smiled at her. "Kind of light-headed."

"Well, I'm always kind of light-headed." Lili joked. Lindir's ears picked up the sound of returning Dwarves.

"I'd better go; your friends are coming back."

"Oh, yes." Lili tried to mask her disappointment. "I'd better go meet them." Lili hesitated, and then walked away.

"Lili! Where were you?" Kili asked jovially.

"In the garden again, I bet." Fili laughed. "She can't get enough of flowers." Lili smiled sweetly, sitting down and was delighted to find that everyone presumed her brother's were right and didn't question her further.

Thorin and Gandalf stood to the back of the room, where no one could hear them. "I saw her with that Elf earlier." Thorin said with bitterness in his voice.

"I believe Lili can account for herself." Gandalf said in her defense.

"I don't like the way he was looking at her." Thorin growled. "We will leave tomorrow."

"We came here to find out about the secret door, Thorin Oakenshield, and we will not leave until we have what we came for." Gandalf said.

"I will not stay where Elves try to woo one of my company."

"And that is your trouble, Thorin!" Gandalf said. "She is your niece, not only a member of this company."

"She was not rejecting his advances." Thorin said angrily.

"It is not her fault, it is yours!" Thorin looked shocked at the accusation. "Her father and step father are both dead, her brothers have never given any thought to a marriage for their sister.

"You should be finding her someone to marry, she is no longer a child. But you have spared her no additional thought, so she is forced to find someone for herself. And Lindir is the only one to pay her any special attention, besides this Iki fellow, whom she hates!

"Wake up, Thorin! Your niece has grown up and you haven't even realized it, you were so busy trying to ignore her. She just wants you to be proud of her."

"I will not have you tell me about my own niece." Thorin said angrily and walked away. Thorin roamed down the halls, thinking of Gandalf's words to him. 'Her brothers have never given any thought to a marriage for their sister. You should be finding her someone to marry…'

"Perhaps Gandalf is right." Thorin finally admitted to himself. "Maybe I should have spared her a little more thought."

Lili woke up in the middle of the night to a tap of something hitting the wall. She'd went to sleep outside along with her two brothers, but everyone else had went inside. She stood up and crept over to the edge of the balcony, just as a pebble went flying past and hit the wall.

"Lindir! What are you doing?" Lili whispered as she recognized the elf down below. She thanked the stars that it was dark or he would have seen the dark color in her cheek.

"Oh, I just wanted to see if you were awake." Lindir said, smiling up at her.

"I am now." Lili admitted.

"Right, sorry." Lindir looked around himself and then back at her. "Would you mind coming down, there's something I'd like to show you, if I may."

"All right." Lili agreed, and disappeared from his view. She quickly slipped on her boots and did her best to pat down her hair as she hurried out the door, careful to not wake anyone. She crept down the empty halls and was met at the open doors leading to the courtyard by Lindir.

"Thank you for coming." Lindir smiled at her. Lili could melt under all the smiles he bestowed upon her.

"I wouldn't miss it." Lili answered, she blushed as he took her hand and started leading her through the garden.

"Well, well, well. What are you doing, big brother?" Miluiel whispered to herself as she watched Lindir lead Lili away.

"What are _you_ doing, Miluiel?" Lord Elrond asked her when she turned around. She started, not having the Lord of Rivendell sneak up.

"N-nothing!" Miluiel answered, trying for an innocent smile. "I was just looking around."

"Your brother would not appreciate your spying on him." Lord Elrond reprimanded. Miluiel looked down at the ground, embarrassed that she had been caught. "But if I may ask, where is he taking her?"

"I don't know, I didn't catch that part." She shrugged, and then brightened. "I like Lili, she's pretty and nice. I wouldn't mind having her as a sister." She turned to ask him about it but he was gone.

"Wow, what is this place?" Lili whispered in awe as she finally came into the clearing with Lindir. There was a gazebo in the middle with a hundred candles lighting up the paintings on the walls. The stars above twinkled even brighter than before, smiling down upon the unearthly clearing. A pleasant singing came from somewhere farther away, the elves, she realized.

"It doesn't really have a name." Lindir admitted, pulling her inside of the gazebo.

"It's so beautiful." Lili whispered, hesitantly reaching out and touching one of the pictures. It was an otherworldly lady, with long silver tresses and gentle silver eyes. "Who is that?"

"The Queen of the Moon, Queen Selenity the Second, the last ruler of the Silver Millennium." Lindir answered, looking up at it.

"What do you mean, the last?" Lili asked, pulling her hand away.

"A great war set upon the moon, and all the Lunariens were killed." Lindir looked sadly up at it.

"That is very sad." Lili whispered.

"There was a little girl, you know." Lindir continued. "The granddaughter of the Queen, her name was Tínu."

"What happened to her?" Lili whispered.

"Killed by the Negaverse," Lindir shook his head. "But that is not why I brought you here."

"What does Tínu mean, Lindir?" Lili asked.

"It means Star." Lindir answered.

"Will you teach me Elvish? Please?" Lili asked, a bright smile flitting across her face. "Please? I'm a fast learner."

"If you want to so much." Lindir relented. He brightens as he thinks of something a little and the smile on his face made Lili blush.

"What is the most important thing to know how to say in a language?" Lindir asked Lili.

"Uh, insults?" Lili blushed, wishing she hadn't said that. That was what Dwarves did, not Elves!

"Alright then." Lindir nodded apparently unfazed by what she had blurted out, nodding in agreement. "Try this: Súrë túla cendeletyallo."

"Súrë túla cendeletyallo." Lili tried, liking the way it felt on her tongue. "What does it mean?"

"It means, 'wind pours from your mouth.'" Lindir laughed and Lili wondered if he was laughing at her pronunciation. "There are much more discourteous insults of course, but I didn't want to wound a lady's ears."

"Even if she can't understand them?" Lili kidded, trying to hide the blush.

"Yes." Lili suddenly started as she heard that. She realized that she had been spending time with an elf, without a chaperone or anything, in the middle of the night. She was… she was alone with him. Her brothers would be so shocked if they knew, and Thorin… she couldn't imagine what her Uncle would think or say or do.

Suddenly uncomfortable, Lili stood up, an anxious expression fluttering over her face. Lindir stood too and walked up to her. "Lili?"

"I- I need to go." Lili said, not looking at him, rubbing her arms for warmth.

"Here." Lindir draped his cloak and Lili was once again painfully aware of how close he was.

"We're going to be caught." Lili whispered.

"Yes. Yes, you are right." Lindir paused and looked at her, holding her hands. "Will you go to the dance with me still, Lili?"

"Yes." Lili answered. "I'd like to do that."

"Thank you." Lindir reluctantly relinquished her hands. "I will see you tomorrow then."

"Yes. Goodbye, Lindir." Lili walked quickly away. She knew she was setting herself up for a lot of trouble but for the moment; she didn't care.

"Lili! Lili, time to wake up! Sheesh, you're like a sleeping bear in wintertime sometimes." Lili was told as she awoke the next morning.

"Thanks." Lili growled and stood up, Kili smiled and went on his merry way of waking others. She realized with a sudden start something she had failed to realize before. She had no clothes. She had only packed one good outfit, the rest of her clothes were for traveling. She couldn't wear the same outfit twice! She sighed and walked into the room where the dwarves were already busy at breakfast.

"Lili, someone left this package for you." Fili handed her a wrapped package.

"Oh!" Lili cried in delight when she saw who it was from and ripped the paper off to pull out a long elvish dress, a simple brown one, for everyday she assumed, made of the same fabric that Elrond had worn at dinner the night before.

"Where did you get that?" Gandalf asked as he came into the room.

"Miluiel sent it to me." Lili grinned. "She must've known I didn't have another outfit."

"Don't let your uncle see it." Gandalf warned.

"But I need to wear it!" Lili cried in frustration.

"I would advise that you wear your extra cape over it then, when he is around." Gandalf said wisely.

"Ok." Lili sighed. That day she found herself with Miluiel picking flowers and singing with the birds. Her brothers were busy looking through the elves armory when they thought no one was looking thought the elves were actually keeping a close eye on them. She went on a walk throughout Rivendell, visiting all of the waterfalls and the river. When she finally got back the sun was starting to set and she was tired. They had dinner inside, which disappointed her but she stayed with the company. Thorin, Balin, Bilbo and Gandalf had just left, going to speak to Lord Elrond, Thorin being dragged along much against his will.

A half hour later, and the group of Dwarves had found meat they could actually eat and were happily munching. Bofur looked down at the sausage in his hand and then at Bombur who was sitting on a table made by the elves with delicate legs holding up the table and Bombur. "Bombur catch!" Bofur shouted and threw the sausage to him. Bombur caught it and the table made a loud 'crack!' before breaking and Bombur hitting the floor. The company howled with laughter, Lili couldn't help joining in. She looked out and saw the sun had completely set and crept out while they were busy.

"Lili! You look beautiful…" Lili blushed. Miluiel had given her another dress to borrow when Lili had told her about the dance. "I'm glad you came."

"So am I." Lili admitted. "So where is this elvish dance to be held?"

"Oh, over here." Lindir held out his hand for hers. She blushed and took it and he gently led her down the halls. Lili soon found herself in a big room full of other elves, dancing around to

"It's beautiful." Lili whispered as she looked at all the graceful figures.

"Will you dance with me?" Lindir bowed deeply.

"Yes, thank you." Lili took his hand and off they went. To Lili it was pretty much a whirl of candlelight and the sparkling of jewels. She found that their dances were easy to adapt to with some help and she knew that no one minded her being there. They barely noticed her, all caught up in their own dances.

"Lindir, I have to say, that was one of the best things I've ever done." Lili told him after they had danced as much as she could and she was so dizzy she could barely stand. "Do you do this every night?"

"No. It's a June dance." Lindir told her. "I'm glad you came with me, Lili."

"I am too." Lili whispered. "I wish we could…" Lili stopped as she realized she was about to give too much away and stepped away.

"What? Lili?" Lindir asked. Lili looked back up at him. "What's the matter?"

"We're not staying, Lindir." Lili finally said. She knew even that information was harmful, but she didn't want to go. Not anymore. Why couldn't the Dwarves all agree to stay?

"Tonight?" Lindir asked, sounding upset.

"No, not that soon." Lili tried for a smile. "I- I wish we could stay. I don't want to leave." A tear escaped Lili. "But I have to go with them. I'll miss you so much."

"When your adventure is over, Lili, maybe you can come back." Lindir suggested hopefully. "Please."

"Yes. I will." Lili agreed and sighed. "Thank you."

"You will always be welcome here." Lindir smiled suddenly. "How do you think you would say that in Elvish?" Lili blushed sheepishly and they went back to their lessons in elvish. Lili walked beside him throughout the entire journey, paying close attention as he taught her the different words. Suddenly she caught sight of the sun coming up and let out a surprised squeak.

"What is the matter?" Lindir asked.

"I can't believe it! Look, the sun has begun to rise!" Lili cried. "It felt like a matter of minutes, not hours."

"Yes. I apologize; I should have remembered that you sleep more than elves." Lindir looked at the sliver of the sunrise and then at the stars that still shone above them.

"I should get back." Lili said but she didn't move. Lindir was looking down at her hands as he held them.

"Elensíla lúmenn' omentielvo, Lili**.**" Lindir said. I blush and am happy that i can understand what he said. (A star shines on our meeting.)

"Le melin, Lindir." He smiled and we're the same color of blush. (I love you, Lindir.) I close my eyes and hug him, hoping that all my friends are asleep and don't see. He kisses me and it's ok. I kiss him back and then I leave.

If my family ever finds out, they'll kill me.

"Melin tirië hendutya sílalë yá lalat." Lindir suddenly appeared the next day and Lili wished she understood exactly what he had said. She assumed it was a compliment however, so she smiled and blushed.

"Lili! Lili, c'mon I want to show you something!" Miluiel shouted tugging at her arm, Lili looked back to see Lindir had disappeared again.

"Where are we going?" Lili asked excitedly as they hurried through Lord Elrond's palace.

"Can't tell! It's a secret." Miluiel giggled delightedly. They passed magnificent statues and paintings but Miluiel didn't slow down and Lili was forced to hurry after her in case she got lost. They finally stopped at a large door, and Lili thought for a moment they had arrived until Miluiel opened the door and they were faced with a new sight. Somehow, on Lili's trek around Rivendell, she had not seen this river. It flowed deep and wide and was as clear as a crystal.

"What is this?" Lili asked in awe.

"This is a purifying stream. There is a much bigger one in Lorien, named Nimrodel. It washes away all the grime and bad feelings." Miluiel looked at the river with a kind of admiration that did not fit with something like water. "Come on!" To Lili's surprise, Miluiel didn't walk gracefully down the hill, but got on her back and rolled down. She was delighted and followed after her. It was great, the feeling of rolling down soft green grass, she hadn't done it since she was much younger.

Everything felt perfectly fine until she hit something and then both went stumbling into the crystal waters. Lili resurfaced, coughing as she sucked up air. She saw that she had hit Miluiel, who was laughing ecstatically as she swam around in the waters.

"Sorry." Lili shrugged her shoulders but was grinning as she followed her friend.

"Dive under, Lili! You almost feel like an actual fish!" Lili had learnt to swim a long time ago, after she had almost drowned in a nearby pond trying to rescue a butterfly that was making an unhappy sound in the water. Before Lili could answer, Miluiel was underwater, her graceful form swimming just like a real fish, though she had a long dress weighing her down. Lili wasn't about to be out-swam though. She dived under and looked about herself and picked up her speed. She quickly passed Miluiel who let out a burst of bubbles in annoyance. She felt like an actual fish as they went up and down the stream, occasionally going up for an emergency breath before going back down lest the other get too far ahead. After they finally became too exhausted to try anymore, they resurfaced at the same time.

"Th-that was SO much fun!" Lili gasped.

"I know, I was just…" Lili felt a jolt of fear as a shocked expression spread across the Elf's face.

"Miluiel, are you alright?" Lili asked, moving forward when a sudden flash of silver caught her eyes. She grabbed hold of it and saw what it was. Her hair. Her hair had lost it's brown and was flashing silver. Lili opened and closed her mouth like the fish she'd just been pretending to be as she tried to think of something to say. How was she supposed to explain this?

"Lili?" Lili swerved around with tears in her eyes to see Thorin and Gandalf.

"Gandalf…" Lili said fearfully, saying everything that needed saying.

"Come on, Lili." Her uncle helped her out of the water, wrapping his fur-trimmed cloak around her.

"Miluiel…" but she was already out of the water, and soaked, bowed to Gandalf and raced back up the hill.

"I have a bad feeling." Gandalf said but then was distracted by Lili's shivering form.

"I'm sorry, Uncle, I didn't know that it would wash out the stain!" Lili cried, knowing that she was going to be in big trouble.

"This is a purifying river, Lili, it washes everything off of you, no matter how strong or old." Gandalf said. "It's not your fault, you didn't know."

"I know but I should have been more careful!" Lili cried.

"Do not bother yourself over it." Thorin said.

"Gandalf." The trio froze and then Gandalf and Thorin slowly turned, with looks on their faces that they hoped weren't guilty. Lord Elrond stood in front of them, and by his side was the still-soaked Miluiel.

"My lord…" Gandalf said warmly as he and Thorin both took a step towards each other to hide Lili behind them. But it was too late; Elrond was staring over their shoulders at Lili. He glanced at Gandalf and his face contorted with what Thorin assumed was an Elf's angry look.

"What are you doing?" Bilbo asked in surprise as he came back in to their room to find Fili and Kili kneeling behind Lili as they slathered something brown up and down her long hair. Lili's face was hidden in her knees but he guessed she was crying by the shaking in her thin shoulders. No one answered Bilbo's question, each busying themselves with something else. Even Fili and Kili, the two mischief makers, looked grim. Bilbo wasn't sure what he should do so he went out to the balcony and saw the Lord of Rivendell and Gandalf deep in conversation. He shut the door behind him, where the Dwarves' soft conversation was coming from so he could hear the conversation.

"I was simply adhering to Thorin's request." Gandalf answered whatever Elrond had just said.

"You had no right." Elrond took a step closer, lowering his voice so Bilbo could barely make out his words. "She belongs with her people."

"Her people are all dead." Gandalf answered.

"She still has some…" Elrond trailed off and Gandalf looked surprised but Elrond went on with another subject. "Do you understand what you are doing by letting her continue to believe she is a strange-looking Dwarf? It's a painful experience when the Ithil-people come into their powers. If she is not among people who can ready her for it, it will be…torture." Lord Elrond substituted whatever he had been about to say at the last minute.

"Her mother was a Dwarf, we don't know if she will come into those powers." Gandalf argued.

"The powers are going to come, Gandalf, and nothing you say can change that." Elrond looked frustrated. Then he paused and looked at Gandalf. "Does she even know?" Gandalf hesitated but Elrond read the look on his face. He shook his head. "I must go talk to her."

"No!" Gandalf nearly shouted. Elrond looked grim. "The dwarves will revolt and run out. Her Uncle will tell her when the time is right."

"'When the time is right?'!" Elrond repeated. "You mean when the first huge shock hits her and he realizes that he can't put it off anymore? Listen to yourself Gandalf! She needs to knownow."

"What do you want me to do?" Gandalf finally asked. "I can't force Thorin to tell her."

"Try." Elrond said sternly. Gandalf bowed his head in agreement. Elrond felt momentarily guilty as he headed off in the opposite direction. What he was about to do was terribly unfair.

"Galadriel." Elrond bowed to Galadriel as she appeared.

"Elrond." Galadriel greeted. "What did you call me for?"

"Several things." Elrond admitted and started to fill her on with the events, holding off the news about Lili. Galadriel nodded thoughtfully as he talked. Finally Elrond paused and he knew he had to make a decision whether to tell her.

"I think there is something else weighing on your mind." Galadriel said.

"Galadriel, I have found Indilaivë." The surprise on her face said it all.

It was lonely. Lindir was busy somewhere else and her friends weren't talking to her. Not that they were angry with her, but that they didn't know what to say. So Lili was forced to wander aimlessly around the garden with her two older brothers following. She turned back to ask them a question but saw that they were busy trying to reach something at a top of a tree. She sighed and walked on, not feeling like talking to them or waiting for them. She half-hoped she would run into Lindir but had seen him earlier working with other elves over something, and he had looked stressed.

"Oh, Hello. Sorry." Lili stopped abruptly. She'd almost run into an Elf when turning. The elf was taller than most she had met, long curly golden hair fell down past her waist and she wore an elegant white dress. "Sorry." Lili repeated, backing off.

"Lili?" the lady had bright blue eyes that shone with curiosity.

"Uh, yes?" Lili asked cautiously, glancing around for her brothers.

"My name is Galadriel." The lady outstretched her hand. Lili didn't know what to do and took it to shake.

"Well, you already know who I am." Lili laughed nervously. The sudden touch of the lady's hand sent a jolt through her spine and for a minute she felt frozen in place and then the feeling went away.

"It was nice meeting you, Lili." Galadriel smiled and went away.

"What a funny girl…" Galadriel thought to herself as she stood in a courtyard, over looking Rivendell. Lili's whole life had flashed before her eyes when she had shaken her hand. Such was her power. And now she was reviewing it, like they were her own. Lili seemed like an altogether sweet girl. Not unlike her grandmother.

"Lady Galadriel." Galadriel slowly turned, forcing herself to put aside Lili's memories to greet the surprised Gandalf.

"Mithrandir."

"I don't want to go!" Lili had cried stubbornly when her brothers woke her up. They probably thought she was just tired, but really she was quite awake. She had made up with Miluiel that evening. She didn't want to leave, not now! Not when she was just becoming acquainted with elvish life. It brought tears to her eyes as she realized that they were taking her away just because of an old feud. She'd never admit it to her family, but she was not willing to leave Lindir either.

She could not.

But still her brothers urged her forward and she found she had no voice or choice. She had to leave with them, without saying goodbye. And for the first time she felt her heart break.

_She remembered very little about the day Erebor had been taken; after all, she'd only been four years old. But she remembered a lot of flames and screams of terror. But most vividly she remembered running away as she heard the clamor of bells in Dale, for that was where she had been playing, she recalled dropping her doll in the crowd and not being able to get back to it. _

_A minute later flames had engulfed her doll, burning the hair and clothes and everything on it. To a child, that was horrifying. She remembered starting to cry, not being able to get back to her doll, the only thing she had from her mother, the doll that had been with her through it all and so she had only been able to sit there, tears falling down her face._

Lili could still see the doll burning in her mind. "Lili, we cannot linger." Lili nodded, following more closely, but she couldn't get her mind off her memories. She remembered something else besides the doll, or maybe it was a dream. But she remembered still struggling to get past the panicked crowd to save what was left of her doll.

_She recalled her wails had stopped in surprise as a huge horse came trotting up, whinnying loudly. Lili had gaped at it, and tried to move to get out of the way so she wouldn't be killed but she instead found herself being lifted off the ground and facing a tall auburn lady with a serious air about her. She didn't even look at her, maneuvering the horse out of the town, Lili desperately clinging to her torso; but hands outstretched behind her as her doll was lost._

"_My dolly! We have to go back and get my dolly!" she'd wailed._

"_Tauriel! You found her!" A tall blond came trotting up on his own horse. She'd felt strong bewilderment that they knew her, but she was too preoccupied with the loss of her doll to ask questions._

"_My dolly! My dolly is back there!" The male looked down at her and looked sorry for her. "We have to go back! I want my dolly!"_

"_Indilaivë, please calm down.__" She'd not recognized such a word and it only made her cry louder._

"_Lili!" she turned to see Fili rushing towards her. "_LILI**!**_" The young dwarf pulled his little sister off the saddle in the blink of an eye. "Go away!" he shouted at the taller people, running in the opposite direction with his little sister._

"What's the matter?" Fili asked his little sister, who seemed dazed.

"Nothing, really." Lili answered. "I'm just tired." Those dreams. She wished she could summon up the bravery to ask one of her brothers if they truly were dreams or long forgotten memories that popped up only in her sleep. The same with her images of her mother and father. Were they just the product of a yearning to remember them? Even more, she missed Lindir.

"We have a long ways to go till we stop tonight." Thorin's voice was heard echoing through the rocks. They didn't understand; how could they? She had kept Lindir a secret so well that they had no idea what she was feeling. When she had told him goodnight last night and goodbye, he hadn't realized what she had seriously meant goodbye.

"Indilaivë…" Lili jerked, looking back, over her shoulder. The wind had whispered that name. But why, how could it know?

"Lili?" Fili was at her side again, looking down the long mountain. He turned and shouted over his shoulder at his uncle and younger brother. "We should stop for a moment! Lili isn't well!"

"I'm fine, Fili." Lili reassured him. "I just thought I heard something."

"Alright." Fili agreed and they moved on, but Lili noticed he didn't go back to the front, instead, trailing after her, as if to be there to catch her if she suddenly fell backward.

"Quod usu ta. Quod usu ta! Gri asan no! Fra rom le qui usu te!" Lili heard Bofur humming the song to himself as he walked along the path. "Ta! Ta! Off usu ta!" (Now we leave, now we leave! Don't forget us! Far from the home we love. Leave! Leave! Off we go!)

Lili twirled to his song and he smiled grimly. Everyone was worried. The path they were about to go down wasn't wide enough. They had to walk single file, or they would fall down a very long ways. As the group continued on, a fierce storm began with lightening and rain all around.

"Hold on!" Thorin suddenly shouted, Lili grabbed hold of a dead root jutting out of the mountain and waited. "We must find shelter!"

"Watch out!" Dwalin warned. Everyone looked up to see a boulder come hurtling through the air and then hit the side of the mountain behind them. Lili squealed in fright as Balin pronounced his verdict, not daring to look and see that it was true.

"This is no thunderstorm; it's a thunder battle! Look!" Balin shouted, pointing to a stone giant, who ripped off a large boulder from the top of the mountain.

"Well bless me, the legends are true. Giants; Stone Giants!" Bofur shouted.

"Take cover: you'll fall!" Thorin shouted out a warning.

"What's happening?" Kili asked just as the first giant threw the boulder it had ripped off of the mountain at the second stone giant. The giant was hit squarely in the face and it crumbled. The ground between the group split apart, leaving half on either side.

"Kili! Grab my hand! Li..." Fili shouted desperately to his brother before Kili disappeared from sight along with his sister. The two stone giants started to fight, their hands like fists. While Thorin and Fili's group is able to jump to a different spot, off of the giant, the other are left holding on for dear life. Lili would have cried. She could feel the need to cry, but she was so frightened all she could do was hug the rock and hope that the other giant lost.

A third stone giant appears and hits the head of the second giant, the one where Lili hung on to. The giant fell over, as the safe group watched, and hit into the mountain two acres away. The giant then loses its footing and fell down the chasm.

"No! No! Kili! Lili!" Thorin shouted as the group rushed to the spot where the others had been crushed. They sighed in relief as they came to the sight, where the others were moaning.

"We're all right! We're alive!" Balin reassured the other group as all the dwarves tried to get out of the pile. He helped Lili up who looked incredibly pale but there was no blood.

"Where's Bilbo? Where's the Hobbit?" Bofur asked in concern as he realized who was missing, while in the background the pile of Dwarves were still trying to untangle themselves.

"There!" Ori shouted, pointing at Bilbo, who was whimpering as he dangled off the cliff.

"Get him!" Dwalin shouted. Ori drives to the ground and tries to catch Bilbo's arm but Bilbo accidentally lets go and falls a little more before he catches another thing to grab. The Dwarves try, but can't pull Bilbo up. Thorin finally swings down, holding at the cliff's edge with one hand and grabbing Bilbo and hoisting him back up onto the clift. He almost fell but Dwalin got him back up, with a lot of effort.

"I thought we'd lost our burglar." Dwalin said in relief when he saw Bilbo was fine.

"He's been lost ever since he left home. He should never have come. He has no place amongst us." Thorin said harshly. "Where is Fili and Kili?" He realized that his two nephews were missing.

"In here!" Kili shouted from a cave.

"It looks safe enough." Dwalin said as they made their way inside.

"Search to the back; caves in mountains are seldom unoccupied." Thorin said suspiciously. Dwalin went through the cave, lighting it up with his lantern. "There's nothing here." He announced.

"Right then! Let's get a fire started." Gloin said, dropping firewood in a pile and rubbing his hands eagerly.

"No, No fires, not in this place. Get some sleep. We start at first light." Thorin said briskly.

"We were to wait in the mountains until Gandalf joined us. That was the plan." Balin argued.

"Plans change." Thorin shrugged and turned to Bofur. "Bofur, take the first watch." Lili lay still under the blanket, ready to fall asleep, but instead she saw something. Something strange. There was a crack in the ground. She watched it curiously, and suddenly it started moving, growing longer.

"Wake up. Wake up!" Thorin shouted, before Lili or anyone else could react, they were all falling down a chute and into a giant wooden cage that has an opening out onto the cliff. Goblins, ugly bent things with a sickly grey or green skin color, come in and herd them all out, taking all their weapons. Lili didn't have anything to be taken. Bats flew around the company as they were pushed down tunnels, kicking and yelling. Everywhere there were crude ladders and skeletons leering at them.

The goblins finally bring the dwarves to a throne room, none more elegant then the rest of the 'city'. The Great Goblin is horridly ugly, gigantic compared to the other goblins with a great warty swinging goiter. The goblins that had brought the group there throw all the dwarves' weapons in a pile. The Great Goblin jumped off his throne and steeped on six goblins, squashing them to death. He held a mace with a skull as he leered at the prisoners. "Who would be so bold as to come armed into my kingdom? Spies? Thieves? Assassins?"

"Dwarves, Your Malevolence." The leader of the pack of goblins, Grinnah, said. "Dwarves?" the Great Goblin asked in surprise.

[Grinnah:] "We found them on the front porch." Grinnah answered.

"Well, don't just stand there; search them! Every crack, every crevice!" The Goblin king commanded. Lili was the only one to react when they thoroughly searched them, smacking a small goblin who had gotten too close for comfort, but she was immediately hushed by a glare from her uncle. She wanted to hurt them, especially after they stole Oin's hearing trumpet and smashed it with their feet. "What are you doing in these parts? Speak!" No one answered.

[Great Goblin:] "Well then, if they will not talk, we'll make them squawk! Bring out the Mangler! Bring out the Bone Breaker!" "What's this?" he suddenly asked, distracted from his plan, pointing at Lili. "Bring her forward!"

"Oh. I bet I could find someone to pay a nice bit of gold for you." The Goblin king smiled.

"Wait." Thorin stepped forward as Goblins grabbed Lili's arms and she screamed.

"Well, well, well, look who it is. Thorin son of Thrain, son of Thror; King under the Mountain." The Great Goblin bowed mockingly to Thorin. "Oh, but I'm forgetting, you don't have a mountain. And you're not a king. Which makes you nobody, really." The Great Goblin said, grinning evilly. "I know someone who would pay a pretty price for your head. Just the head, nothing attached. Perhaps you know of whom I speak, an old enemy of yours. A Pale Orc astride a White Warg."

"Azog the Defiler was destroyed. He was slain in battle long ago." Thorin said, his voice laced with hatred.

"So you think his defiling days are done, do you?" the Goblin king asked, then laughed and turned to a tiny goblin sitting in a basket attached to a rope. "Send word to the Pale Orc; tell him I have found his prize." The tiny goblin wrote down the message and then went sliding down the rope, laughing. A hundred goblins came towards the throne room, carrying huge torture instruments.

"Bones will be shattered, necks will be wrung! You'll be beaten and battered; from racks you'll be hung. You will lie down here and never be found, down in the deep of Goblin-town." The Great Goblin sang lustily, dancing around to his song. Grinnah was examining the weapons when he picked up Thorin's sword and screamed, dropping it in front of all the other goblins. They recognize it immediately, screaming in fear and anger. The Great Goblin gasped and jumped back on his throne, looking at it in fear. "I know that sword! It is the Goblin-Cleaver, the Biter, the blade that sliced a thousand necks." The goblins all began whipping the dwarves with rope and biting them. "Slash them! Beat them! Kill them! Kill all the men! Cut off his head!" Lili screamed when she saw goblins holding her uncle down, and Grinnah preparing to slice off Thorin's head.

Suddenly, light exploded all through the room, making all the goblins pause in what they were doing and then the goblins went falling down the chasm. When the light dimmed away they saw that it was Gandalf, his staff held high and his sword at his side. The torture machines were destroyed. The Dwarves and the goblins didn't move, still in shock. "Take up arms. Fight." Gandalf ordered, they continued staring at him. "Fight!"

Finally awoken from their trance-like state, the dwarves began fighting the goblins. Lili took her chance, well aware of how cowardly she was, and raced to hide behind her brothers.

"Get out of here!" Fili ordered as he got his sword pack and sliced at a goblin. He looked back at her, she was staring wide eyed at the blood running out of the goblin's neck. "GO!" Lili looked at him and at the others. She picked up her feet and raced the opposite direction.

"Nori!" she heard someone shout behind her, but she didn't stop, she heard the stomps of the goblins coming after her. She ran through the cavern, it seemed to last forever, a maze of tunnels and ramps. Lili squeaked when she came upon the Great Goblin. He grinned at the sight of her and grabbed the back of her cape and hoisted her up in the air just as the rest of the Dwarves arrived.

"Lili?" Kili said in shock as he saw his little sister being held up in midair by the goblin king. They couldn't go on with him blocking the path and if they tried to attack the Goblin he would kill her. "Let her go!"

"You thought you could escape me?" the Great Goblin asked with a leer and then with his free hand he swung his mace twice at Gandalf, who teetered back and almost fell, but missed him both times. "What are you going to do now, wizard?" Gandalf hit the Great Goblin in the eyes with his staff. The Goblin king dropped his mace and clutched his face in pain, saying ow, ow, ow. Lili managed to get free and was pulled back into safety behind the company. Gandalf stepped forward and sliced the great Goblin in the belly. The Goblin king fell to his knees. "That'll do it." He admitted before Gandalf sliced off his head and he fell down dead. His weight was too much for the bridge and the piece that the company was on fell down and hit the bottom ground. Everyone groaned as Gandalf got out and inspected the other dwarves, who were all still stuck in the wreckage.

"Well, that could have been worse." Bofur said positively a moment before the heavy corpse of the Goblin king slammed down upon them all. Everyone cried out in pain. "You've got to be joking!" Dwalin cried.

"Gandalf!" Kili warned, seeing a thousand goblins come running towards them, even as the dwarves pulled themselves out of the rubble. "There's too many! We can't fight them." Dwalin shouted.

"Only one thing will save us: daylight! Come on! Here, on your feet!" Gandalf said, helping Ori to his feet. The dwarves all raced after him. They finally get outside and the goblins do not follow. The Dwarves all paused to catch their breath, Lili took the time to take a deep swig out of her water skin and she heard Gandalf distantly counting. "Five, six, seven, eight...Bifur, Bofur...that's ten...Fili, Kili...that's twelve...and Bombur - that makes thirteen. Where's Bilbo? Where is our Hobbit? Where is our hobbit?!"

"Curse the halfling! Now he's lost?!" Dwalin demanded, hating the thought of going back inside. Gloin exclaimed "I thought he was with Dori!"

"Don't blame me!" Dori shouted back.

"Well, where did you last see him?" Gandalf asked.

"I think I saw him slip away, when they first collared us." Nori answered instead.

"What happened exactly? Tell me!" Gandalf shouted.

"I'll tell you what happened. Master Baggins saw his chance and he took it! He's thought of nothing but his soft bed and his warm hearth since first he stepped out of his door! We will not be seeing our Hobbit again. He is long gone." Thorin answered.

"We don't know if that's what happened, Uncle, he may have…" Lili started to argue but Bilbo suddenly appeared from behind a tree.

"No, he isn't." Bilbo said.

"Bilbo Baggins! I've never been so glad to see anyone in my life!" Gandalf laughed in relief and the other dwarves smiled as well, excepting Thorin. Lili rushed forward and hugged him tightly. He smiled and awkwardly patted her back.

"Bilbo, we'd given you up!" Kili said in relief at the sight of the hobbit.

"How on earth did you get past the Goblins?!" Fili asked in wonderment.

"How, indeed." Dwalin asked. Lili felt the awkwardness of the silence that then passed and was relieved when Gandalf spoke up.

"Well, what does it matter? He's back!" Gandalf said.

"It matters! I want to know: why _did_ you come back?" Thorin asked Bilbo.

"Look, I know you doubt me, I know you always have. And you're right, I often think of Bag End. I miss my books. And my armchair. And my garden. See, that's where I belong. That's home. And that's why I came back, because you don't have one. A home. It was taken from you. But I will help you take it back if I can." Bilbo said nobly and Lili smiled widely.

"That is very gallant, Bilbo Baggins." Lili laughed but then the smile disappeared from her face as she looked up the hill. There were Orcs atop Wargs and leading them was a white Orc. It was Azog.

"Out of the frying pan..." Thorin said as he looked up the mountain too.

"...and into the fire! Run! RUN!" Gandalf shouted at the top of his lungs. The Company started running as fast as their legs could take them. The wargs' breath was hot on their necks. Finally, they were brought to the end. With only a few trees separating them from the end of a cliff.

"Up into the trees, all of you!" Gandalf shouted and Lili didn't hesitate; she was able to scale the tree in seconds as her friends struggled. "Come on, climb! Bilbo, climb!"

"They're coming!" Thorin shouted.

31


	2. Quick Apology

Hello, this is PearlTenshiSerenity. I'm going to finishoff the first hobbit movie but i'm not willing to go and try to imagine what happens since i did that with another of my stories, called Lithoniel Mir and it went weird. Of course, i had started that one when i'd just found out about the Hobbit, but still, it just went left and right and was uncontrollable. So... Yep. Thank you for your patience and hopefully i'll be done with the next part soon.

I'd also like to know who you think Lili should be paired with. Obviously i'm already leaning towards two but which one? Let me know.

Thanks!


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